I have a lot of friends at Penn State, after working for years with them in research and development projects involviing energy and materials. Up until a few years ago we had a consortium with several universities and companies that was centered at Penn State. I can tell you that all of us looked up to Penn State in engineering as well as football.
When it came to football, we all loved Joe Paterno, too. Joe was able to run what we considered to be the best football program, with the most distinuished alumni and an incredible graduation rate. At my university, we sometimes have a reputation for being rowdy, and our student athletes do not always graduate to be brain surgeons, although some do. But Paterno was the master at graduating distinguished scholar athletes, and he also produced incredible football teams. Yeah, when WVU is not on the TV, we'd be happy to turn on the Penn State game and root for Joe's team. We looked up to Joe and his fans. They were the ones who did things the right way.
Now, however, Penn State is having riots as they attempt to come to terms with the notion of playing football without their great coach. That's not what Joe taught, is it?
Many people feel the need to defend their accused assistant coach, who allegedly committed anal intercourse with a ten year old boy. The message is that persons of authority in the football program should have some form of immunity, and are entitled to have anal intercourse with boys. Even the University president pledged "unconditional support" for Athetic Director Tim Curley and administrator Gary Shultz, who are accused of illegally protecting Assistant Coach Sandusky and multiple allegations of child rape. This is madness.
Some have threatened to kill the young man who informed former Coach Paterno of the alleged rape by Assistant Coach Sandusky. This also is madness.
There have been riots to support the moral Coach and so much threat of violence that the pep rally for Saturday's game was cancelled. Fans of Penn States opponent have been advised not to wear their school colors for fear of violence from Penn State fans. This is not school spirit. This too is madness.
Major segments of the university community have been swept into some kind of frenzy, which somehow went from the highest standards of ethics, academic achievement and power football to now standing for child rape, coverups and violence. This is pathetic and it very wrong. It is very, very far from the path that they were on.
Morality and ethics have been totally lost. It's not just the leader, but the everyday person that has somehow been swept up in a horribly warped mentality.
Come back to us, Penn State. I want the Penn State that we all looked up to, not this cesspool.
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